Bob Pressler Headlines Spring 2011 Seminar Series

Lieutenant (Ret.) Bob Pressler, Fire Department City of New York (FDNY), will present the association’s Spring 2011 Seminar Series "The Incident Tactics System." The series kicks off on February 3, 2011 and concludes in early April, hitting 10 locations across New York state. A new location has been added to the spring 2011 tour in Sullivan County.

The introduction of the incident command system (ICS) has led to fireground operations being more efficiently and managed. Unfortunately, the ICS will manage the operation, even if the tactics that are being employed are incorrect and sometimes even dangerous to our operating companies. The incident tactics system (ITS) was developed so that fire departments that use the ICS to manage their fires will also have a system in place to help them select and manage the tactics that are needed to successfully bring the incident under control. The ITS identifies the tactics needed to operate on the fireground by breaking down the typical fires that most departments respond to. The fires are classified by the expected resources needed to safely and efficiently bring the operation under control, and through the system, how to expand the tactics as the incident conditions change.

Pressler, a 37-year fire service veteran, retired from the FDNY as a lieutenant and currently serves as 2nd assistant chief of the Montgomery Volunteer Fire Department. He served for several years as the hands-on coordinator for FDIC, is a past member of the editorial advisory boards for Fire Chief and Fire Engineering magazines, and is a nationally renowned fire service author and lecturer.

The series, sponsored by VFIS and Sprint, will be presented in the following locations:

February 3 – Saratoga County – Clifton Park, NY
February 9 – Rensselaer County – East Greenbush, NY
February 17 – Onondaga County – North Syracuse, NY
March 8 – Monroe County – Henrietta, NY
March 9 – Niagara County – Lockport, NY
March 10 – Cattaraugus County – Salamanca, NY
March 15 – Sullivan County – Liberty, NY
April 4 – Chemung County – Elmira, NY
April 9 – Clinton County – West Chazy, NY
April 14 – Otsego County – Worcester, NY

On-site and pre-registration will be available for $15 (NYSAFC members) and $25 (non-members) per person. Don't forget – if your department is a NYSAFC Department Member, you can register under the discounted member rate! Click here for a pre-registration form and full seminar details.

All weeknight programs begin at 7:00 p.m. (Clinton County Saturday program begins at 9:00 a.m.).